The present invention relates to the structure for a battery including a primary, a secondary, a fuel cell or a combination battery. In particular, it relates to the placement of the positive and negative terminals on the side wall(s) of the casing for a battery.
Previously, batteries, such as the sealed lead-acid storage batteries, have a structure shown in FIG. 1. A sealed lead-acid storage battery comprises a casing 10xe2x80x2, a main cover 60xe2x80x2 and a top cover 90xe2x80x2. In the casing, positive and negative plates 31xe2x80x2 and 42xe2x80x2 are arranged alternatively with separators 21xe2x80x2 therebetween. All of the positive plates 31xe2x80x2 are connected in parallel to a positive post 35xe2x80x2. All the negative plates 42xe2x80x2 are connected in parallel to a negative post 46xe2x80x2. The main cover 60xe2x80x2 is fixed onto the casing 10xe2x80x2 and sealed with an adhesive resin. The positive and negative posts 35xe2x80x2 and 46xe2x80x2 respectively go through openings 67xe2x80x2 and 68xe2x80x2 in the main cover 60xe2x80x2 and are welded respectively to positive and negative terminal lugs 37xe2x80x2 and 48xe2x80x2, the lower part of which occupy larger areas than the posts for the terminals. An adhesive resin is used to fill in the gaps between openings 67xe2x80x2 and 68xe2x80x2 and the positive and negative terminals. The casing is filled with an electrolyte through an opening on the main cover which is then covered with a rubber safety valve 23xe2x80x2. One of the drawbacks of the prior art battery is that two steps are necessary to seal the battery: one to seal the main cover 60xe2x80x2 to the casing and the second to seal openings for the terminal lugs 37xe2x80x2 and 48xe2x80x2 on the main cover 60xe2x80x2. A second drawback is that terminals 37xe2x80x2 and 48xe2x80x2 located on the main cover and top cover 90xe2x80x2 are prone to be short-circuited by a metal object which may have fallen onto the top of the battery. Further, connections to the battery can only be made on the top of the battery, and extra space is necessary to accommodate the terminals.
To overcome the above mentioned drawbacks of the prior art batteries, a battery with terminals positioned on the side wall(s) of the casing below the main cover for the battery is provided. By placing the terminals on the side walls of the casing, the possibility of being short circuited by fallen metal objects is eliminated to increase safety in operation, the connections to the battery is easier to make and the space needed for storage of the battery or installation is reduced. At the same time, the two steps necessary for sealing the battery is reduced to one step.
To achieve these goals, (1) The positive and negative terminals are fixed on the opposite side wall(s) of the casing and respectively connected to the positive and negative posts which are connected to the positive and negative terminals through slots located in the side wall(s) of the main cover; (2) After the plates and terminals are properly connected, the main cover can then be fixed onto the casing and sealed thereto with an adhesive.
The invention is also directed to a method of manufacturing a battery with side flanking terminals. The method comprises placing the positive and negative terminals in the side wall(s) of a battery and connecting the terminals respectively to the positive and negative posts to which the positive and negative plates are respectively connected in parallel arrangements. Then sealing the main cover onto the casing with an adhesive.